Forest Walks
by Rachel.Three
Summary: Zoro/Perona. Pre-time skip


Zoro meandered through the trees. Left at the fork, right, left, left. He glanced up at the slowly greying sky at every opportunity available; hoping to find some form of answer to his ever lasting misdirection.

He knew she was following him. He'd spotted her flinging her pink hair when she thought he was readjusting his boots. Perona had been persistent in her stealth; keeping behind a substantial amount and using her ghosts to point her in the right direction.

Zoro was getting frustrated. He had been walking since dawn and his injuries were still sore. After – eventually – finding his way out of the creepy castle, he'd been hoping to find the bay. Or, at least something to build a boat out of. Perona had held back when he got into danger, fighting off twenty-or-so gorillas at a time. She winced every time he was struck, but kept stubborn. This made Zoro angrier. _Don't bother following me if you're not going to be useful_, he thought.

Not that he needed her help. No.

The thin slither of orange that was the setting sun lowered entirely beneath the horizon. Zoro huffed. The forest seemed to be louder at night; he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep properly, but he set down his swords and bag and curled up on a patch of grass, regardless.

When she saw him settle down, Perona silently called back her ghosts and floated closer. His snores almost shook her and she pulled a face.

_Not cute at all_. Floating in a sitting position above his chest, she inspected his bandages. Stained with old, and new, blood they curled at the edges and sagged over his stomach. Perona straightened out and sank to the floor, kneeling beside him.

She carefully removed the old bandages from around his wounds, wincing slightly at the state of his body.

Having seen Zoro exhausted once before, she knew there would be enough time to replace his bandages and get out of his way before he awoke.

She reached into the bag she had brought with her and pulled out a small pouch of salve. However, before adding more ointment to his chest she paused, her hand hovering centimetres above him. The cold air had made the hairs on his arms stand on end, and his torso was littered with goosebumps. She lowered her hand and moved it cautiously down the centre of his chest. Using her fingers, she traced the defined lines of his stomach muscles. Zoro grunted and she snatched her hand back abruptly, holding her breath. He immediately went back to snoring, undisturbed and unaware of her presence.

Perona's cheeks were flushed as she exhaled and composed herself. Thanking her lucky stars that no one was around to witness her moment of weakness, she set about applying the salve and wrapping his body in clean gauze.

Manoeuvring his heavy, sleeping form was more work than she had expected and after she had finished, she too was drowsy.

The glow from the moon illuminated the foliage on the floor around her, her eyelids felt heavy and a yawn escaped her mouth. Perona flumped down onto the drying leaves next to Zoro and fell asleep.

The sun had barely risen before Zoro stirred. His chest felt less painful but heavier; confused, Zoro looked down to find the pink-haired girl curled up against him, her head resting on his front. Zoro smirked and placed his arm over Perona's waist, _to keep her warm_. He drifted back into slumber, his body suddenly warm as Perona had shuffled herself closer in the morning sun.

A tall figure stood beside the sleeping pair, his form casting a dark shadow over their bodies.

"Ahem." He raised an eyebrow as the both of them suddenly woke. Perona jumped into the air, red-faced and squealing.

Zoro sat up gingerly and rubbed his eyes. He scowled at Mihawk's disapproving face and stood up. He shoved past him and stalked away towards the north.

"He's trying to get off the island." Perona leaned shyly around a tree, addressing Mihawk's back – her cheeks still tinged with pink. "He'll never survive if he does."

The tone of concern in her voice caused Mihawk to glance back towards her. He gave her a nod and headed south, back towards the derelict castle.

Perona watched Zoro follow his feet then set off floating after him once again. Zoro looked back to where Perona was hiding behind a tree and smiled in her direction.

She felt her cheeks redden and the corners of her mouth forced a twitch upwards.


End file.
